WESTERVILLE, Ohio — “It never quits. I get here about 5:00 and leave about 2:00, 3:00, 4:00, whatever it takes,” said Peter Sterk, owner of Westerville’s “Just Pies” bakery.
It’s Sterk’s busy season. In fact, you better get in a good stretch if you plan on keeping up with him.
By his estimation, Sterk has been slinging pies for more than four decades since he was a teen, starting at his family’s business in the northeast Ohio city of Vermillion.
“I started in my mom’s pizza shop in 1978. She had a restaurant, and she was not getting the pies done quick enough so I was operating their pizza shop. So I said, ‘I’ll just go in early and make the pies for you,’ and that’s the start of it all,” said Sterk.
Sterk’s known for his famous pecan, apple crumble and pumpkin pies, a favorite this time of year. He said what makes his pumpkin pie stand out is keeping the recipe simple.
“I don’t add any other fillers, gums, any unnecessary ingredients. Just sugar, starch, cinnamon here, nutmeg here. Keep it all simple because it’s not going to sit around for months. You don’t need all that extra stuff,” said Sterk.
They say “variety is the spice of life” — Just Pies offers more than 30 options, including pot pies.
Sterk said he loves the rush and hasn’t experienced a slow down during the pandemic.
After all these years, he still takes great pride in his work and customers, serving up thousands of pies per week for central Ohioans and beyond.
“Little bit of leakage, that means they’re done inside. Like grandma says,’ make sure they spit up a little bit. Make sure they’re done’. Lot of them say, ‘oh it’s just like my grandma used to make or my aunt use to make’. You know, you can’t over-stress pie making. It’s not really hard; it’s just technique,” said Sterk.
Just Pies is located at 736 Northfield Rd. in Westerville.
